What is RAM?
RAM stands for Random Access Memory, a main component for many devices varying including phones, laptops, consoles, and many more. It’s a type of memory known as short-term memory where data that is required by the processor at the time of the task is stored. The more complex the task is the more RAM it requires.
Two main types of RAMS
DRAM = also known as Dynamic RAM is a type of RAM that many users use very often in devices in the modern world today. Every memory cell in this type of RAM with a transistor and a capacitor located in an integrated circuit along with a data bit stored in the capacitor. Due to the inability of the transistor to withstand the data for long durations, the capacitor mildly discharges therefore the DRAM has to be constantly refreshed at least every few milliseconds to retain the relevant data required for the processor to carry out its tasks smoothly.
SRAM = also known as Static RAM is constructed with six transistors. The great advantage this provides is that it will retain the data in the memory card as long as a power supply is provided to the RAM card whereas, in DRAM, the memory has to be refreshed constantly. However, the downside to this is that this is costlier than DRAM.
Why is it important to test RAM?
When testing the RAM, the faults can be figured out to take actions to ensure the worker experiences by the user are maximized. Further, if the computer is having troublesome issues doing a ram test is appropriate. Thereby they can exclude the possibility of whether the RAM was the fault for the instability. Therefore, the user then can look into other components of the computer device to find the cause if it wasn’t the RAM.
What are the Diagnosable Symptoms of Bad RAM in your PC?
- Your screen will consist of any unrelated lines or black areas or patches which aren’t related to what you are viewing on your computer screen.
- The computer will lag or freeze here and there and could even take seconds to minutes to continue. In worse circumstances, you might even have to force the shutdown of the computer or restart it to resolve the issue.
- In some circumstances, the RAM can corrupt your data files and therefore cannot be revived again which could be a heavy loss for you.
- As countermeasures taken by the computer, the device might automatically restart itself whenever it needs which can affect the worker experience for you.
- When streaming or playing videos, you will experience lag, and the video won’t be played smoothly.
- In the worse possible scenarios, your computer can experience a “ blue screen of death” where the computer displays a dark blue screen with white fonts depicting technical language that you might not be able to understand
Therefore, doing RAM can help you figure out any possible issues you might experience to ensure your user experience is at its peak.
How does the RAM test work?
To identify the reliability of the RAM card in the device, the tool writes data into the RAM card and thereafter reads it back. If the results show the writing speed is the same when writing in and out of the RAM, this action demonstrates that the RAM is in great condition. However, if the writings speeds are different from each other, then it portrays that the RAM is in a bad state.
How to test the RAM of your pc?
Method 1
- Click Start Menu Icon
- Search for “Windows Memory Diagnostic” and run the application on your pc
- Once the tab appears, click “Restart and check problems”
(Windows will now automatically restart the pc and reboot itself)
Thereafter a bluescreen will present the test running and it will run its in-depth memory test. In the status section, it will show “no problems have been detected yet” if the ongoing test hasn’t found any faults.
Generally, after the test finishes, the computer reboots itself and shows the lock screen as usual. Thereafter once you log in you’ll be able to view the results.
There’s a chance that the results won’t appear. Yet you can locate the results by simply going to “Memory Diagnostic”
Steps to do so,
- Press Both Windows Key and R together to Open Run Dialog Box
- Subsequently, Type “eventvwr.msc” in the Run box and press enter
- Open the event viewer tab go to Windows log and view the drop-down list under it.
- Afterward, go to System
- Thereafter it will show a list of details and below actions which are located right beside the details, click find
- In find type “Memory Diagnostics “. This will show the results of the text that you ran on your device002E
Method 2
- Download Passmark Memtest86
- Extract the files in the Zip file to a folder located on the desktop .
- Insert a USB stick or Pen Drive into your pc. ( If any essential data is in the USB stick, make sure you back them up to another drive. Because Passmark Memtest86 format the USB stick therefore any data on it can’t be retrieved.
- Go to the folder you extracted, then Run “ image USB”
- On the top white box you will be able to see your inserted USB stick. Select the USB drive
- Now click “Write”. The writing will take some time depending on the writing speed of your USB stick.
- Restart your computer and go to the Boot Menu. This can be done by pressing F2, F8, F10, Del, or whatever key according to your device’s make and model.
- Boot Off the USB drive in the boot menu
- A Black Screen will appear with two buttons named “Exit “and “ Config”
- Press “Config “
- Click “(S)tart Test “ in the home of Memtest86
Now Memtest86 will do the needful. It will run a few tests and put the RAM to test and figure out if the RAM consists of any issues. The screen will show the progress on the screen.
However, if they realize any issue then it will show a fault. Therefore you must either repair or replace the RAM through an IT specialist. Depending on the device there can be RAM kits. Either replace the damaged RAM stick or the whole RAM kit. Checking if the RAM stick or Kit is under warranty is better as they will repair or replace it. It’s better to check the warranty because RAM kits are expensive specifically a reliable and good quality stick.
Final Words
In Addition, if the RAM test doesn’t show any issues and yet the computer can is lagging, this may be because the user is putting much higher workload than before. For example, opening two or three large RAM-consuming applications which may demand a RAM capacity that is higher than what’s available. As a solution increase the RAM capacity by Replacing a RAM stick with a higher capacity. Also adding another RAM stick with the same capacity as what’s existing currently if a slot is vacant is an option.